SCORE column: Write copy that will appeal to customers

Green Bay SCORE mentor Andy Duchow is used to having clients ask for help writing copy. In response, he has created a template to make the process easier (www.andyduchow.com).

“The primary mistake that business owners make in writing their own copy is they don’t know their customers as well as they should,” Duchow SAID. “They write too much about themselves rather than looking at the writing from their customer’s perspective.”

The ideal letter consists of five sections starting with a headline or testimonial. Duchow likes testimonials because they build trust and break down resistance. A headline, if not stated correctly, can actually turn off potential clients.

“A testimonial is social proof that your product is good. Everyone will read it and be drawn into the rest of the copy,” he said.

Once the letter has the attention of the reader, the first paragraph should state the reason for the letter in one sentence. Duchow says that one sentence is easy to read and low commitment. It’s the best way to hook a prospect and encourage them to read on.

That leads to the offer, the statement of what you want the customer to do.

“The offer is the answer to why,” Duchow said. “That’s what makes it key. You might have a good product, but if it’s presented in a way that isn’t compelling to me, I’m not going to be interested.”

An issue many businesses have with the “why” part of the letter is that they don’t know why. Duchow said there is a tendency to make statements that aren’t important to customers with overused words such as trustworthy, high quality, service oriented, or experienced. Since so many businesses use those terms, they have lost impact.

“Besides, you are just saying that. There’s no proof in those claims,” he said.

The most important thing to know before starting to write is what is important to your customer. Everything comes back to that. Businesses owners need to actively engage and ask questions, because the answers may be completely different from what was thought.

After stating the offer and the reason that a customer should buy from the business, there is the call to action. This should be highlighted, bold face, or underlined.

“What do you want them to do? How should they do it? Should they write, call, send a check, stop in? Tell them exactly what you want them to do, or they won’t do it,” Duchow said.

He recommends using offers that are measurable so that there is a clear indication of how well the advertising is working. This will allow the business to make more effective use of marketing dollars.

Whatever the medium, marketing materials should be consistent in use of a logo, color, type styles, and format to help with branding. Being recognizable builds trust. It’s also a good idea to have someone else read over the copy, and to use bullet point lists or sub heads to make copy more readable.

“The thing we need to ask ourselves when writing copy is if this will make sense to our customer, and if the offer is compelling to the people you’re trying to reach. It’s only good if it works,” Duchow concluded.

Tina Dettman-Bielefeldt is co-owner of DB Commercial Real Estate in Green Bay and district director for SCORE, Wisconsin.